Max Mirnyi and Andy Ram defeated third seeds Mahesh Bhupathi and Mark Knowles for the second time in their careers on Monday. The Belarusian-Israeli pair, competing at only their fifth tour-level tournament, knocked out third seeds Bhupathi and Knowles 7-6(2), 6-4 for a place in the BNP Paribas Open quarter-finals.
Mirnyi and Ram, who first beat the pair on their team debut en route to the Vienna title in October 2008, improved to 8-3 lifetime together. Ram's regular partner Jonathan Erlich has not competed on the ATP World Tour due to a right elbow injury since the US Open in September 2008.
Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro and David Nalbandian (pictured), who are making their team debut at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tennis tournament this week, progressed to the quarter-finals after beating fourth seeds Lukas Dlouhy and Leander Paes 76-(6), 7-6(5). Paes and Dlouhy have reached the Australian Open semi-finals (l. to Bryan-Bryan) and finished runners up in Rotterdam (l. to Nestor-Zimonjic) this year.
Fifth-seeded Poles Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski struck seven aces and saved six of eight break-point opportunities to defeat the all-Spanish team of David Ferrer and Albert Montanes 4-6, 7-6(6), 10-4 in 89 minutes.
Elsewhere, Americans Mardy Fish and Andy Roddick overcame Michael Llodra and Radek Stepanek 6-4, 7-6(6) and Richard Gasquet and Stanislas Wawrinka edged past Lukas Kubot and Oliver Marach 7-5, 3-6, 10-6.
(From Website : http://www.atpworldtour.com/TENNIS/1/EN/NEWS/NEWSARTICLE_2627.ASP)
